


Never Had

by busyyhead



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Emotional Manipulation, Internal Conflict, Kinda, M/M, Vampire Bites, also Sam Uley is a tired dad, jacob doesnt imprint on renesmee, ✨gay✨
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:53:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27907765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/busyyhead/pseuds/busyyhead
Summary: “Yeah,” Embry says, instead ofI wish I could have something like that. He's not sure he does anyway. It sounds scary.
Relationships: Aro/Embry Call, Jacob Black/Edward Cullen/Bella Swan
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	1. Chapter 1

Embry won't say that he hates being a werewolf, but that doesn't mean that it isn't true.

It's not that his clothes are still the same hand-me-downs from his half-brothers, because they had the same manifesting wolf genetics playing havoc with their puberty, or that the mental bond makes sure there are no secrets among the pack.

But, he's just saying that before his change, none of this shit happened.

He thinks that's why Jacob likes Bella-- maybe with her he feels as though he has a link to what his life was like before, and maybe that's enough to help him make sense of what his life is now.

He and Jacob have spent the last hour tearing through the woods patrolling the perimeter, but the woods are quiet tonight and their minds have started to wander- Jacob's mind is usually a confusing mess of Bella and motorcycles and the smell of forest, clashing around for his attention while the rest of the pack usually has a front row seat to 'what Jacob wants'.

It's one of the few things Embry hates about having to share his thoughts and just one of the few things he hates about being a werewolf.

Later, when they get to Sam's they phase back to human form. Embry doesn't bother with clothes, sitting down on the couch Sam had cleared for him. Normally, they break apart here, but Jacob settles into a corner, dozing upright, arms crossed.

Things have been uncomfortable between them, to say the least. Maybe because when Jake had broken away from Sam, he'd sort of been hoping that Embry would come with him. Only he didn't, and even though Jake said he's forgiven him, it hasn't stopped Embry from feeling terrible about it.

“Do you ever stop thinking about her?” Embry asks finally. “About Bella?”

“Bella?” Jake asks. “Do I ever stop thinking about Bella?” He shrugs.

“It's all you think about.”

Jake shrugs again, but it's tighter. “I love her. Shouldn't I be thinking about her?”

He turns his head to the roar of the trees and the far off ocean outside.

“Yeah,” Embry says, instead of _I wish I could have something like that_.

He's not sure he does anyway. It sounds scary.

*

He wakes up panting, his legs aching and jerking around in his sleep, having kicked off his woolen blankets a while ago- and with an itch to burn off his noxious, spare energy.

He's outside, ready to phase when he glimpses Jacob and Bella in the light coming off of the porch.

He doesn't have to say anything: Embry likes to think that they are able to sense each other's thoughts even now that Jacob has officially left the pack.

It also doesn't take a genius to notice the amber eyes and the diamond shimmer. None of the members of the pack have pushed for more information, though Embry has a feeling that Jacob won't be able to avoid talking about it forever.

He simply nods and sends them the closest thing to a smile he can manage before turning towards the woods.

Ten minutes later, he's following down a trail between the trees, the moon a white sickle in the sky, not enough to cast much light. Not that he needs it for him to see. When he's almost out of the pack's territory that stretches for miles around Sam's property, he begins the process of stripping off his clothes.

He chucks his shirt onto a boulder and is about to unbutton his pants when he smells it.

Embry tenses immediately, trying to ready himself for... well, he's not sure what exactly. Their contract means so little now- Jacob had made very sure of that. None of the pack could harm any of the vamps now. They get along, though it doesn't come easy.

He's expecting a fight, maybe, but instead he hears something crack in the distance. His mind burns with the image of dripping red fangs.

“Oh crap”, he hisses, remembering too late that vampiric ears can hear everything in a five mile radius.

He runs, forgetting about his shirt and even phasing, only stopping to shift when his lungs begin burning in his chest (Jake is the only one who's mastered to phase without stopping) and cold terror whittles his mind down, sharpens it straight and linear as he leaps over fallen logs and tries to keep his footing on the ground. Wolves have the advantage of being faster than vampires- at least in a _straight line_ , right?

The vamp is on his trail. Embry can't hear anything beyond his own breathing, but the smell hasn't changed a degree, and he knows how inhumanly patient their kind can be.

He's panted through a mile at supernatural speed when he realizes that he'll be marginally more difficult to track without the clear prints of paws to follow.

 _Screw it_ , he decides, he's a werewolf- he can tell the bloodsucker to get lost up close and personal if that's what they want.

He phases back to human on instinct- he's barely gotten his balance back when he's suddenly in the air.

 _Flying_ , or well, bouncing is actually more accurate. There's something hard and painful digging into his stomach, right below his ribcage, stealing his breath away. He's on the ground on his back, all of the bloodsucker's weight over him.

Embry stares up into a pair of red, nearly-black eyes. The _wrong_ color. They should be gold, or black. The hands curled around his wrists and keeping them pinned to the ground are so cold, _colder_ even against his living heat. It _hurts_.

“Ah, one of the Cullen's _pets_... “

At that, Embry can feel himself prickle, forgetting about the pollutant grasp called fear trying to sink its claws into him.

“I'm no one's pet,” he growls out at the vamp hovering over him with a raised brow, obviously amused by this.

“No?”

Embry starts to struggle, trying to push himself up and throw the other off of him. He finally elbows him off, listening to the others grunt and bursts into a run.

He doesn't get farther than twenty feet when he finds himself slammed hard against a tree. Some of its branches crack, a thousand needles raining down on them. On instinct Embry turns his face away, closing his eyes. The vamp bares his teeth and he waits for the impact.

It seems like days have passed when he feels teeth bite down on his throat.

Embry goes tense, half way to phase.

Of course he knows that theoretically, blood loss doesn't hurt a werewolf much, even in human form. He's probably not the first of his kind to be bitten by a vampire either, though he's not prepared for it to be over so quickly.

The venom stings like antiseptic on the bite marks but does little else. There's blood on the corner of the other's mouth, but he wipes it away, mouth curled in a grimace. _Mutt blood_ , Embry thinks nastily. He hopes the taste stays for days.

The vamp chuckles, like he'd been reading Embry's mind. Embry goes very still, closing his eyes and feeling a cool, slick tongue move over the wound.

It's _that_ which finally rekindles his squirming. This time the vamp allows him to scramble up, hair falling over his face, neck still bleeding.

He hightails through the forest, too fast to be human anymore, phasing without really meaning to.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this story is going to be mostly without editing or double checking spelling, because I'm lazy and a terrible person. thanks for reading, comments, kudos, bookmarks are much appreciated.

He makes it back before the others even wake up. Which is probably the best thing for him because he looks like he's gone a couple rounds with a hoard of trees. He’s sure he has leaves in his hair and in his pants, scraping up against his skin uncomfortably every time he moves.

If they ask him what happened to the rest of his clothes, he will just say they were shredded phasing. That excuse always works, because the werewolves always seem fickle about their clothes anyway.

At least, there are no marks for him to have to explain. Werewolf genes: 1, human: 34, he thinks as he walks straight to the kitchen to splash some water on his face.

“Couldn't sleep?”

Embry jerks. Sam is sitting on the rickety wooden chair in the kitchen, arms crossed over his chest.

“It’s not that I ever sleep much anyway,” he says, and as if on cue he can feel a yawn coming on, purposefully keeping his mouth closed to cover it up as best as he can. From the look on Sam’s face it’s not working out for him. “Did Jacob- ?”

“He'll be back. He's bringing Bella... home,” Sam starts, but it doesn't sound as natural as he probably meant it to. “Jacob said he saw you leave. Were you out all night?”

The image of the bloodsucker overtaking him brings the cold terror back. He shakes his head, not so much in reply to Sam's question as in an attempt to clear his mind.

“Yeah,” he says, hoping the alpha hasn't already seen the truth in his mind. He pretends to cough a couple times before exiting the room. “I gotta take a shower.”

“Last door to the right,” Sam says, waving down the hall. He doesn't comment when Embry flips on all the lights as he goes.

*

The rest of the pack arrives when he's getting out of the shower. Embry gets dressed as quickly as he can, throwing on a random hoodie and practically leaping out of the bathroom.

Though he'd moved in months ago, it still feels strange opening his eyes in the morning to a room that isn't the one he'd grown up in. Embry hadn't been against the change- Emily had seemed really happy to have him here, but it had taken a while to get used to.

In the mornings, Emily makes tea instead of coffee. Sam tends to drink orange juice, and the first time Embry had seen him and Emily in the kitchen, he'd wondered when he became so domestic.

It also turns out that somewhere along the road, Emily learned to be an amazing cook. She cooks for the pack every day, and Embry finds himself eating actual food when he's here. As fall got a little colder, she even started making cinnamon rolls per Embry’s request.

It was nice when things were calm, because they aren't always, or ever, so here they can all pretend that life is normal and they are normal. Embry hopes that maybe, this game of pretend will last.

He walks into the kitchen in jeans and an old stretched out gym sweater, sure that his shoes aren't even matching either. Emily shakes her head in pure amusement, Embry's answering smile tired and sheepish as he crosses over to the table and takes a seat next to Leah. Somewhere outside, Seth and some of the new shifters are roughhousing. Embry remembers how excited the other boy had been to no longer be the youngest in the pack. He can also hear Sam and Jacob's subdued voices in the hallway.

“What did I miss?” he asks, stretching his arms high with a groan.

“Jacob agreed to fight with the bloodsuckers,” she answers, her head shaking. “He's trying to convince Sam to fight with them.”

She doesn’t seem happy really about it. Even without the mental bond between them Embry can tell Leah isn't happy about the bizarre diversion of Bella and the bloodsucker's half-vampire, half-human child that resulted in her having to be here, just when she'd finally broken free from Sam's pack and the mental discomfort that came with being forced to share his thoughts.

Embry gets why Leah is so bitter: if his boyfriend had dumped him for his own cousin, and later he transformed into something out of a wildlife movie, he'd probably be bitter too.

“Oh,” Embry says, scratching a hand though his messy hair. “Is- is there even anything we CAN do? Isn’t there like, some weird vampire cult that isn't really happy with our existence?”

“Yeah. At least that's how Sam puts it,” Leah says.

Embry can feel Sam's reluctance over their bond even before Leah looks over his shoulder and stares at Jacob with a curious look.

“You can tell your friends the pack will fight,” Sam says. He still sounds reluctant, and Embry is so astounded by the lack of real anger that it takes him a while to process the words. His head snaps around to finally look at Jake, surprised at the calmness with which the other holds his gaze.

*

The pack can smell the coming storm before the vampires can, a hint of moisture in the air, ripe with static and rain. Embry's nose picks it up effortlessly, keeping guard of their surroundings. The temperature has dropped, though he can't feel it. Paul's paws tread under abandoned twigs from the woods and dried, crunchy leaves, snuffling Embry's side.

 _Shouldn’t you be with Sam and the others_? the younger asks, almost tentatively. The other wolf shakes his head.

 _I don’t_ have _to do anything. Not like you_. A pause, and he says, _Go home_.

 _I don't_ have _to listen you either_ , he says, an automatic response to being ordered around.

He waits for Paul to lose interest and eventually start trotting away. _Well, I'm going. Some of us actually do sleep_.

He’s alone, just him and the tree branches over head, the dirt and needles underfoot, guarding the edge of the perimeter from the bloodsucker's stench and speed.

Even from miles away he senses them: the stink of so many vampires. Embry drops his grey muzzle onto the forest floor.

Sometimes he wonders how Jacob does it, because Bella was always covered in Edward's scent, and now she's the same. Maybe months of smelling Edward on her, their scent doesn't sicken him so much. He can ignore it. Of course it doesn't solve the problem that he can't have her. Edward still keeps Jake from her, even more than Jacob keeps himself from Bella, because as much as she loves Jacob he's smart enough to know she will always love Edward more, even though that doesn't stop them from wanting each other.

Embry wonders, dully, if Sam felt the same way towards Leah, or if the imprint really wiped all his feelings for her away. He knows Sam deserves happiness, but so does Leah. He wonders if the imprint wipes away the rest as well, people you love like your father, sister, brother. He's not sure how he feels about that.

Suddenly, the smell is no longer miles away.

Embry starts, peering in the direction Paul disappeared off to, terror immediately trying to find its way into their bond- when the reason why reveals himself (as if he doesn't know already).

He appears before him, coming to a stop only a few feet away. Embry snarls, showing off the sharper edge of his teeth, canines sharp and glinting in the silver moonlight. _Run away_ , his wolf says. _Get out_!

“So we meet again, and much sooner than I’d hoped.”

Part of Embry wants to rip the bloodsucker in front of him to shreds with the instinct that is older than him and either of their races, wants to lurch forward despite the strength he lacks for him to even be a match to him, wants to bury his claws in the throat of the male before him.

Part of Embry can't take his eyes away from him, keeping perfectly still as his instincts make blind lunges at his mind like a rabid animal.

The other watches him, eyes still the same red, something between amusement and fascination scattered across his face. He's almost with Embry in two slow steps, without bothering to heed the blood-curdling growl at his approach, or the gold eyes watching him warily. Instead he lifts his hand, and with a look like he's asking for permission (like that is even possible), very slowly runs his slim fingers along the bridge of Embry's head where his ear meets his skull.

It takes him longer than it would probably take the other to attack him, that he's being _pet_.

By a bloodsucker.

The feeling is strange, and Embry hates every moment of it. Hates even more that he feels the part of himself that wanted to rip the other's head off become smaller and smaller.

“Yes, how marvelous, indeed,” the other says, and Embry hates how much he wants to tear the smile off his face and doesn't. “You are rather tame for your kind, aren't you?”

He tells himself that he doesn't enjoy it, trying to hold on tightly to his wariness, even when he knows that the hand that's currently rubbing the edge of his ear isn't unpleasant at all. He still tries not to show how much he enjoys it, even when he knows that his tail gives him away.

(It's not wagging in a blurring arc like it usually does when Bella or even one of the pack pets him, but it's not really still either, all because of the hand sliding down his back while the other is practically _cooing_ at him).

 _He needs to go, right fucking now, screw this damned leech petting him, he needs to, he needs to_... !

Embry snaps his teeth at him, watching with satisfaction as the leech quickly withdraws his hand.

He has the petty hope that that's all the warning the other needs not to come close to him again, as he quickly passes by him, retreating in the same direction he'd come from


	3. Chapter 3

Embry grunts as he toes off his shoes, and that's when he hears it- voices, from the kitchen. One is obviously Sam's but one, no _two_ , aren't pack. He knows Paul is at home, sleeping, maybe, and Emily is upstairs.

For a moment he thinks about bolting, already moving out the door when he suddenly hears Sam's voice- and when he realizes that it's in his head it startles him so much that it almost makes him stumble, his werewolf reflexes kicking in just in time before he can embarrass himself by falling and breaking his neck.

The voices quiet except for the obnoxiously loud sound of a chair scraping backwards.

 _Embry, get in here, now_! Sam says in his 'Alpha voice', and Embry can't _not_ follow now.

His shoulders slump and he huffs. When he enters the kitchen, there are two familiar figures ( _kids_ , because that's what they are. They barely look older than _twelve_ for fuck's sake), standing in the kitchen with Sam.

Sam, for his part stands with his arms crossed in front of him, looking at Embry unhappily, discomfort oozing from every fiber of his being, body poised for a fight. The feeling seems to be mutual for the rest of the occupants.

Embry instinctively knows what this means- Jake had made a small comment about more members joining his pack, through from his tone and the way his eyes had darted away from Embry's he wasn't happy about it either.

Embry can see the tension in Sam's face at the fact that yet more members of their tribe have phased as a result of the increasing vampires in the area.

“So,” he starts, and winces. “they the new recruits?”

“Yeah. I want you and Quil to help them with their phasing. You know the drill,” Sam says. And there it is again, Sam's 'Alpha voice' that says there wouldn't be any protesting the fact. Alpha's order and all that.

“Right. Consider how bad of an idea that is.”

Really, they don't even have time to learn all the wolf things that Embry and the rest of the pack had taken weeks to get the hang of. It sucks bad enough to go through it with a _whole_ pack for support. Sam had to deal with this alone and it had taken him _months_.

“I already considered it, Embry. Now go.”

Embry scowls, scuffing his feet against the floor as he marches outside, listening to the squeak of his shoes against the hardwood, followed closely by two extra sets of footsteps. He yanks open the door more forcefully than necessary, and glowers at them over his shoulder.

“Keep up,” he snaps, and watching them both flinch and hating himself, he says, softer, “Come on. We've got a lot of ground to cover.”

*

They're _thirteen_. Cameron and... Tyler? he'd have to start remembering their names soon, are watching him with idolizing eyes, their heads tilted to the side in unison. They look kind of like puppies that way.

If possible Embry hates himself for snapping at them even more.

“I didn't know you could turn into a real wolf, Embry!” _Sort of. So can you_.

Embry isn't even sure if they can be considered _real wolves_ when they are four times the normal size of one and several pounds heavier.

“Were you scared, of turning into a werewolf?” Tyler asks. Embry frowns.

He hasn't really given it much thought after the fact. The first shift is always the scariest. The whole thing had only scared him before the first shift, and the questions about his father had scared him even more than the actual werewolf part. After that, he'd been happy to have the whole pack for his family, even more so when Jake shifted too.

“At first I was.” His tone is gentle as he's trying not to scare them any more than they probably already are. “But everything is fine now. As long as you remember to always bring spare clothes with you, you'll be fine. Trust me, the worst thing that can happen is being naked in front of a bunch of bloodsuckers.”

He almost laughs at the memory of being naked in front of the whole pack for the first time, small, skinny Embry being loomed over by tanned, six-foot giants.

“Is it true that you can talk to each other telepathically?” Cameron asks.

Embry hums in confirmation. “Yeah, there’s a load of stuff like that.” Anyway, he's getting off-topic again.

He crosses over his chest. “Okay. Try and phase. It's okay if you can't.”

The first couple tries are, unsurprisingly, the worst. They're still trying to find their footing, and Embry will need at least one more member of the pack for damage control, but he figures it's not a bad start. The actual phasing part is a lot easier with the stench of so many vampires polluting the area. Embry is able to contain them within the property, fortunately, and to their credit they are already adjusting to the change faster than he did: it's more that they have no idea what they signed up for that's scaring them. Emrby's fist clench at his side at his frustration with Sam.

He likes them. Maybe because they're not much more than kids, even if they are strangers, or maybe it's because Embry _gets it_. He knows _all_ about trying not to be confused and, worse than that, _scared_. All while trying to wrap his head around everything that's happening.

“Great. Now try phasing back. Try to think of something you really like doing as a human. Like climbing a tree or something.“ At least that always works for him.

Embry watches while they try to figure out how to phase back into their human form. He can phase anytime if anything happens, and he can hear just fine with how quiet it is- that's how he knows Jake is coming before the other boy even comes into view. Embry would know the sound of his footsteps through the underbrush anywhere. They've spent enough time together after all.

“Hey.” Jake comes out between the trees to meet him. “Just wanted to see how you're doing with the new pack members.”

He shrugs. “Sam wants me to get them ready to tear off some vampire-faces,” he says, hoping to lighten the mood a little.

“And?”

“And I'm fine.” He takes in a breath, eyes focusing on anything other than Jacob. He knows if he looks at him, he won't be able to stop feeling terrible about what happened. “How's living with a bunch of bloodsuckers?”

“Well,” Embry expects him to roll his eyes and say something like 'unbearable', but instead he says, “I've gotten used to keeping a tight leash on wanting to kill them all the time.”

Except he doesn't say it like sharing a house with vampires is just something he has to put up with to be close to Bella, and he looks more surprised than Embry that he means it.

Wrinkling his nose, Embry makes a slight face. “You really _stink_ , Jake.”

The older boy smirks playfully at him now, shoving his shoulder just to show that he's kidding when he says, “No bad leech-smell could keep me away from Bella.”

Embry snorts, head shaking in amusement. “Is that how you've been trying to charm Bella? Because that would explain why you're still single.”

Jake smirks. “Wow. I don't see all the girls you're pulling in anywhere.” His voice is _dripping_ with sarcasm. “Bella is the only girl that's ever paid attention to you. How sad is that?”

“Still more attention than she's paid you,” he snarks back. Jake laughs. As if Bella gives her attention to anyone else except him and her bloodsucker.

“Y'know the idea of putting you on your ass is still a _definite_ possibility, right?” Jake teases.

-their noses know there are vampires nearby before they do. Cameron and Tyler perk up at the same time.

Embry might have left it alone altogether if Jacob recognized the smell, but the other boy growls, loud, his russet wolf emerging and gathering the other wolves' attention.

With a sudden start he takes off through the sweetspire shrubs to his right, Embry phasing to follow closes behind.

 _Wait here_! he barks at Tyler and Cameron, h _is voice rougher than his usual semi-growl to make sure they know he_ _means it_ _._

 _He's on Jacob's_ trail with one long leap, easily keeping up with him. The wolves' thick fur protects them well enough against the barb-sharp, outstretched branches of a pitch pine, but it still leaves smears of sap on their coats. They don't slow even down to orient themselves, they don't have to- the smell is strong enough for them to follow even if they weren't in wolf form.

Lucky for them, the bloodsuckers aren't even trying to run.

Jake lets out a growl, and instinct has Embry leap for the first bloodsucker he can glimpse, seeking to bury his teeth into the cold flesh in what seems like an instant. Next to him the russet wolf is doing the same, almost tearing the head from his own bloodsucker's shoulders. He barely misses, scrambling up again just as fast to sink his teeth into him.

Embry narrows his eyes at the second leech watching him with predatory, blood-red eyes. He smiles mockingly at him, revealing the sharp points of his fangs to him. Embry growls. _Leech. Vermin. Threat_. The wolf in him (or out?) snarls.

With one leap, he buries his teeth into the vamp's shoulder and they go tumbling over the grass. A pale hand darts out to catch him by the neck, the fingers clawing him from nape to shoulder. Blood spews onto the ground and welts are rising up in their wake as the bloodsucker lifts him with inhuman strength and throws him back down on his back. Embry is winded, trying to push himself up and throw the other off of him now.

The leech screeches when he manages to bury his teeth in him, whipping his head around to tear through the bloodsucker's throat. The crunch between his teeth isn't bone or even cartilage, just stone and void of blood.

It would horrify him if he could still be horrified by the level of _unnatural_ and _wrong_ in his world now.

He looks over to the russet wolf approaching him, snuffling Embry's side to make sure he's okay. Embry wishes they could read each other's mind again just so he could tell Jake that it's really just a flea bite. It burns like a bitch, but it'll heal fast enough once he shifts out of his wolf-skin.

His eyes finally drift to the bloodsuckers they'd killed.

They picked the wrong day to wander onto the werewolves' territory.

In any case, Jacob hadn't recognized them, which already rules out they had anything to do with the Cullens. But maybe they would know more.

Looking over at Jake, he seems to be thinking the same.


	4. Chapter 4

Embry rubs the juncture of his neck and shoulder with a wince.

“You're sure it was them?”

On the other side of the table, Leah stares at her breakfast. Scrambled eggs and burnt toast. She seems to notice their hosts watching her picking at her food before she sighs and cuts the burnt parts off with a knife. It's obvious that the Cullens have never made real food before. The reason their fridge is stocked now in the first place is the half-human half-vampire child sitting with Jacob on the couch in the living room.

He wonders, dully, where the rest of the Cullens bloodsucker friends are.

“We're sure,” Jacob says from his post. “I checked. Same bad smell and the same creepy red eyes. No offense.”

“None taken, dog,” the blonde one, Rosalie says back pleasantly. Too pleasant. Embry shifts uncomfortably in his chair between them.

Staying with the Cullens, or just being around them was different that what Embry is used to, but for the time being it seems they are stuck. It doesn't mean he's comfortable with them.

Wolf or not, there's that part, that animal instinct in the back of Embry's head, screaming at him that they're killers, predators, and he's still made of blood and soft and breakable.

The mindreading bloodsucker is Bella's boyfriend and Embry knows her well, so letting his guard down around him is easier than it is with the rest of the Cullens. The tall, buff guy that would give Sam a run for his money has always been associated in Embry's mind with the word 'intense', and the other blonde, Jasper, looks like the personification of 'brooding', the way he sullenly stares down at the table. If Embry really had to lay claim of 'liking' any of them, Carlisle is probably it. He'd be dead before he would ever admit to it, though.

“So what were they doing here?” he asks, toying with the handle of his mug and dropping his hand when he realizes he's fidgeting. “How many of them are here?”

“The men you described were members of the Guard. We think that maybe the Volturi send them out to collect information,” Edward says.

“You think they already know the packs will fight,” Jake states, matter-of-fact.

 _No shit. The wolf is out of the bag now_. “Well, there goes the element of surprise.”

He looks to Edward leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in front of him.

“We might not have the element of surprise but we won't need it if we can... _convince_ them not to fight,” he muses softly.

It takes every shred of Embry's self-control to keep his laughter in.

“Hold on, let me make sure I'm grasping this, you actually think a pack of giant, drooling werewolves will make your cult of bloodsuckers turn tail?” he asks incredulously, trying to wrap his head around it even as Edward is nodding his head.

“They're afraid of you. You're the only real threat to our kind. No human can ever harm a vampire, but a werewolf's teeth on the other hand can. I've seen what your kind can do to our kind. I think that if we can bring out their fear, we can avoid a fight with them.”

The blunt summary of his plan makes Embry cringe. The incredulous look on his face deepens when Jacob nods, _agreeing_ , halting any further progression of Embry's words.

He scowls. Of course. There's no telling Jacob Black what to do. He always marches to the beat of his own drum. It's something Embry both admires and loathes about him.

By the look on Rosalie's face, he can tell she isn't happy to have a pack of werewolves save the day either. That's something at least.

While Esme clears the kitchen table of all their plates Embry wanders the house, eventually going outside to lean on the edge of the balcony, looking out at the forest. From here on in, it's waiting time Edward had said, so listening to the forest seems like the best option for now. Or a nap, maybe. A nice, long nap on the the Cullen's couch almost seems preferable to the few hours he'd managed to get in the last few days of sleeping on Sam's shitty, barely put-together couch. He's slept on worse, but just because he is part dog doesn't mean he enjoys sleeping on hard surfaces.

He's about to do go back inside and lay his claim on the couch from Jacob when he smells _him_.

He couldn’t so easily forget that smell, more of a stench, really.

 _He’s_ just out past mutual ground, enough distance between both the pack and the vampires in the house to avoid them smelling him, but Embry can smell him as if he were standing right next to him.

He waits ten minutes for the rest of the Cullen household to notice, or for Jacob to come bursting outside in wolf-form, but when neither seems to be happening anytime soon Embry does something he's not sure is him or his wolf instinct possessing him to do, he leaps over the balcony railing.

The needles and soft soil on the ground absorb his landing enough not to catch the attention of anyone in the house. Embry stretches out his arms and rolls his neck until it cricks, phases and starts running north.

He runs for ten minutes, putting enough distance between himself and Jacob and the others.

Grim disappointment fills him when he reaches the point where the smell is strongest and doesn’t find anything. He's ready to just lay down and finally sleep on the next rock he trips over, for a moment genuinely thinking about it, when he hears the rustling sound behind him.

His golden eyes find the red cloth that's unnoticeable right up to the moment it’s suddenly right in front of him, and then it is gone again just a fast.

His immediate thought is that he should go back, the wolf in him recognizes a trap when it doesn't look like one, but the part of him that tore the leech's throat out an hour ago wants to run. Wants to _run free_.

He takes off like a rocket, and to his surprise he hears the other abandon stealth and launch straight into a run. Dirt flies up when the wolf's paws meet the ground in the same spot the other had stood a moment ago. He leads Embry through closely growing firs and over treacherous spots of moss and a brush so thick the foliage whips Embry's cheeks.

His muscles soon start to hurt but he feels exhilaration build up inside him and take over. The other easily avoids the trees around them, but twice Embry has to alter his course last minute before crashing headfirst into a tree.

He dodges him again when the wolf has almost gotten close enough to snag his sleeve. He's much faster than any of the other leeches Embry chased before.

He's also no match for a wolf.

Embry jumps right as they get to a field of sweet vernal grass. The wolf's sheer weight takes the other to the ground. His face gets smashed into the ground as the they roll over the grass, coming to a stop when the vampire rolls on top of him.

Embry phases back to human instinctively.

His chest expands with his breaths, but he's otherwise unruffled. The other smiles, revealing sharp teeth. Embry shivers, recognizing the predator above him. The sight of those teeth brings the old animal terror back.

He bites him just hard enough to make Embry cry out before releasing him again. His lips are slick with Embry's blood.

He hopes he tastes fucking awful.

“It is rather pungent, yes. Though not altogether unpleasant.” Something hot flares in his stomach. He doesn't really understand _how_ the vampire knows.

“You lead me all the way out here to tell me how I taste?”

A gust of Paul's breath hits him as the other chuckles, soft, more at himself than Embry feels. "The smell is still rather repulsive,” he says, seeming apropos of nothing.

“Yeah you don't smell all that great either.”

Embry flinches at the feeling of cold fingers sliding over his neck. Not hurting, just keeping them there, something that could be claws if the other wanted it to be. He runs a cold thumb across the burning points of his teeth marks, rubbing it almost tenderly. Embry snarls.

“Insolence must be a wolfish trait as well,” the man says evenly.

Embry snorts. “You bloodsuckers are more animal than us, and we're the ones turning into actual wolves.”

“I am not an animal.”

“That's arguable.”

The vampire presses him down further onto the grass now, silent, considering. Embry watches him warily. The grass is cool and prickly against his bare back, the smell of autumn and dirt heavy around them. He reaches up, brushing pale fingers across Embry's cheek. The touch burns against his skin, leaving a trail of cold that doesn't begin to marginally relate to the vampire's own body temperature. The claws mitigate pressure, motivating him to lie _still_.

“When I heard of werewolves in the Olympic Peninsula, _shapeshifters_ ,” the man says, totally non-sequitur, “well, when you've been alive for as long as I have, naturally my interest was piqued.”

“You still might regret finding one,” Embry growls.

One of the vampire's nails slides down his throat and down his chest, skittering all the way down to his navel. He waits for the skin to go pink, a delighted smile playing on his lips when it does.

“You'd be wise to leave such threats behind your teeth,” he says, softer now.

It takes a few moment before Embry realizes the noise that echoes in his own throat, as hard as he tries to hide it behind a growl.

"Maybe when you stop trespassing I'll stop threatening you," he snaps, anger and humiliation burning in his veins.

Even if he'd wanted to struggle, the wolf in him recognizes that he's no match for the bloodsucker. The old parts that belong to a greater being than him, the part of his ancestors, are taking over the body he's always known. What's worse, it recognizes the other as dominant and _submits_. Any thoughts of ripping the vampire's head off are pushed to the side when he looks up at him now. It's all instinct, no reason or conscious decision on his part, and he hates it.

“Fascinating... From your action I assume you are not the Alpha of your little pack of shapeshifters. Perhaps the Beta?” A dark brow arches in question. The mention of the rest of the pack for a second time causes an uncomfortable pang in his stomach, so instead he avoids the other's questioning eyes. The action involuntarily reveals a tanned sweep of his neck to the other, red eyes focusing on it in an instant.

“Hate to disappoint you,” Embry replies, going tense as he feels the still slick mouth come down over it, and goosebumps rise over his arms. His heart stutters, nails digging into the ground when the pain doesn't come. Instead, he feels the other _smelling_ him, like the vampire is cataloging his scent. He can just see the tips of the vampires ear from his point, glowing a little in the dimming light, pale against the autumn.

He's uncomfortable with the silence that lingers in the tension filled air. It's uncomfortable and difficult for him just to _lay still_.

“What's you name?”

The other pulls away eventually. A beat passes, and another, and _another_ , red hues staring curiously at him.

“Aro, dear.”

“Embry.” After all, he isn't sure if the other really can read his mind. He doesn't know what makes him say it.

He blinks when the man stands suddenly, though the gracefulness of the movement takes away any shock it might have had.

“Run along now, dear. I'm sure we'll soon meet again.”

He isn't surprised when Aro leaves, too fast for the werewolf's eyes to actually watch him.

 _Too soon_.

He lays in the grass and waits until that horrible smell has faded away.


End file.
